A Vietnamese travel vlogger went viral this week after uploading a video in which he unknowingly shares a meal sitting beside Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman—without acknowledging her presence once.
The video features the YouTuber, Khoa Pug, dining at a restaurant in Japan to review different types of Sushi.
Realizing the opportunity he had missed, he uploaded the video to YouTube on May 11 with a red arrow pointing at the actress. Racking more than 1.2 million views, netizens wasted no time roasting the vlogger for his mistake.
Highlights
- Vietnamese travel vlogger Khoa Pug unknowingly dines next to Oscar winner Natalie Portman in Japan without acknowledging her.
- Khoa Pug admitted frustration that fans ignored him for Portman, realizing later he missed a rare star encounter.
- The YouTuber was roasted for ignoring the Hollywood star by 1.2 million viewers.
“You were sitting with Thor’s wife and you did nothing!?” a viewer asked. “You’re so lucky! Just going out to eat and meeting a superstar like that!”
A Vietnamese travel blogger went viral for uploading a video in which he unknowingly shared a meal alongside Natalie Portman
Image credits: Khoa Pug
Throughout the entire video, Khoa Pug—one of Vietnam’s biggest travel influencers with close to 5 million subscribers—doesn’t acknowledge the actress or glance in her direction, seemingly unaware of her presence throughout the video.
Image credits: Khoa Pug
His viewers reacted with a mix of disbelief, amusement, and a healthy dose of envy.
“Thor's wife sat next to him. Be careful—if thunder hits you with a stick, you'll become a lightning superhero!” one joked.
“How the hell did he sit with Natalie Portman, one of the most beautiful stars, and he just sat there eating and ordering food like it was just another one of his videos?”
Image credits: Khoa Pug
Others took the chance to comment on how natural and easygoing Portman looked despite being one of Hollywood’s most prestigious stars.
“Natalie is so natural, she even bites and sucks her fingers. Seeing Khoa eat so much, she must’ve been surprised,” a fan wrote.
Khoa said he was initially angry that he was not receiving the attention he had grown accustomed to at the restaurant
Image credits: Khoa Pug
The unintentional encounter amused Khoa himself, who was initially taken aback by being “upstaged” by what he considered to be just a random woman sitting next to him.
Image credits: The Late Show with Stephen Colbert
“I was sitting down to eat and saw customers constantly asking to take pictures of her. I was so angry, I thought: ‘How strange! The number one travel YouTuber in Vietnam is sitting here, and instead of asking to take pictures of me, they’re asking to take pictures of the woman next to me!’” he said.
“Who would have thought!”
Image credits: Marvel Studios
In a lighthearted tone, the influencer explained how, in hindsight, he lamented not seizing the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“I sat down with Thor’s wife and didn’t even say hello… I’m so pissed off at myself, this is so annoying.”
Image credits: Khoa Pug/Facebook
It’s unclear what the actress was doing in Japan, but some speculated that her visit may have been a brief personal trip ahead of her scheduled appearance at the Cannes Film Festival last Saturday (May 17).
Portman’s carefree demeanor at the Japanese restaurant contrasted with her busy schedule
Even though she remained low-key in Japan, Natalie Portman has been dealing with a busy schedule and has multiple high-profile projects in development.
For instance, Fountain of Youth, an upcoming adventure drama directed by Guy Ritchie, in which Portman stars alongside John Krasinski, will premiere tomorrow (May 23) on Apple TV+.
The story follows Portman and Krasinski, who play siblings, embarking on a quest to find the mythical fountain using a map left behind by their father.
Image credits: Khoa Pug
In the same vein, The Gallerist, a thriller directed by Cathy Yan, sees Natalie Portman star alongside Jenna Ortega, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Sterling K. Brown, Zach Galifianakis, Daniel Brühl, Charli XCX, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
The movie wrapped its principal photography in February of this year, and is expected to premiere somewhere in 2026.
Finally, The Twits is an upcoming animated comedy film in which Portman voice acts alongside Emilia Clarke, Margo Martindale, and Johnny Vegas. The movie is based on a 1980 novel by Roald Dahl.
The project entered development in early 2003, and is set to be released at an unspecified date this year.
"He's a celebrity as well." Vietnamese viewers defended the YouTuber online
